NEW DELHI: Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper Rajat Patidar carved his name deeper into IPL folklore as he powered the defending champions into a second straight final with a dominant 92-run win over Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 at Dharamsala on Tuesday.Powered by a clinical all-round display, RCB completely outplayed GT in every department to storm into the IPL 2026 final, moving one step closer to a rare back-to-back title triumph.The standout moment of the night came from Patidar, who delivered yet another explosive playoff masterclass. He remained unbeaten on a blistering 93 off just 33 balls, smashing 9 sixes and striking at an astonishing 281.82 as he tore apart the GT bowling attack.With this feat, Patidar joined an elite group of captains who have led their teams to consecutive IPL finals. He is now only the fifth skipper in tournament history to achieve the milestone, alongside MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Shreyas Iyer.
- Captains who have led their teams to back-to-back IPL finals:
- MS Dhoni (2010, 2011)
- Rohit Sharma (2019, 2020)
- Hardik Pandya (2022, 2023)
- Shreyas Iyer (2024, 2025)
- Rajat Patidar (2025, 2026)
RCB’s consistency has also placed them in an elite bracket of franchises to reach successive finals as defending champions, alongside powerhouse teams such as Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans across different IPL eras.The 92-run victory also stood out historically, ranking among the biggest wins in IPL playoff cricket in terms of margin of runs.
- Biggest wins in IPL knockouts/playoffs (by runs):
- 105 RR vs DC (Wankhede, 2008)
- 92 RCB vs GT (Dharamsala, 2026)
- 86 CSK vs DC (Chennai, 2012)
- 81 MI vs LSG (Chennai, 2023)
- 71 RCB vs RR (Pune, 2015)
GT, however, remain alive in the competition and will get another opportunity to reach the final when they face the winner of the Eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 2 on Friday.
